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Patented March 3 1868.

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Lam Patent No. 777L986, dated M'areh 3, 1868. l

IMPROVEMENT Ill MOWING-MAGHINES.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: V

I Bc-it known-"that I, Gi loli'e'n EJBURT', of Harvii'rdl-in the county ofv Worcester, in the State of Massachusetts; have invented heiv'a'nil usefulImprovements i'n]Mowing-Machines; and-I doherehy declare that the following is a Full and exact description thereof, reference-being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference mark eil'tliereon, lnnhioh- I Figure 1 is a side elevation of the mower, withthe cntter-hnr down in its working position. Figure 2 is front elevation with cutter down; I Figure 3 is a 'side elevirtifon with "the "cutter-liar raised, showing the parts used in raising the cutter-bar, while the other par-ts are removcdj i Figure 4 is it"fi'ont elevation, showingthe 'posit-ion of-the' cutter-bar when rnl'sed, undthe parts connected with it. v

Like letters repi' ese'nt l ike parts in' all the I figures... The nature of my invention consists in arranging amhhanging the seat to mowing-machines in such a manner that the driver's weight, when he is-in the seat, shnl-l operate, partially, to lift the cutterhar, ipr0por ,tionzilly lessening the drought of the machine; also in.constructing and attaching iuechanism,arrangedlin such a manner as to act in conjunction with the operators weight, and enable him very quicklyand easily to raise the cutter-bar; to piissflobstacles, or hold it elevated with his foot, thus giving him the use of both hands to arrange his tenniwhen turning, 01" passing obstructions; also, in arranging and combining periphery-rolls with mowingrmacliinewheels thatti re constructed with large, stationary, central hollow rings, thus avoiding the friction of stutionary r'olls,or the still greztter'friction of the large tube forming the bearing, and entirely avoiding the necessity ot'flnhricating the same. In the accompanyingdrawings 'A is the fi-zirn-ejB' is the pole; 0C are the supporting-boxes, to which the lever D is pivoted, E is' the brace which holdsthe eutter-har in position F; is the pitman passing through the centre of the wheel I, which pitman drives the knives; 'G is the cutter-bar; H'is the segment on which the chain c is wound to raise the cutter-bar; I I the outer'ring of the hollow wheel; J is a ring which holds the periphery-rolls in their places,

one ring, L sting on either side oi'thc wheel, both being kept together, and in place, by the conneeting braces a a a. K is 'the h ollow, central, sta'tionnryring on which'the rolls and outer ring I turn, and is fastened solidly on to the frameworkA of the'mo'wer. L ,isa projection from thefrazne to support the torward end of the shoe N; M is thejwlieel on thelsicle of the mower away from the cut-tenbar; T is the drivers seat; d is a pivot upon which the levr "D turns; are the periphery-rolls; r is the foot-lever, attached firmly to the segment s, which is connected, teeth or a'chain, to the wheel 21; y is it shaft, which conneetsthe-wheel e to the segment H; b is the crank that operates the cutter-knives. v

This invention may beapplied to most of the mowingnnachines now in use, but thedevice for lessening the friction is designed for such mowing-machines as are'eonstructed with wheels turning on large hollow rings, through whichthe brace and the pitmanthat operate the cutters pass.

To apply my invention for lifting the dead weight of the cutter-bar to a machine of common construction, I provide the lever 1), made of any suitable material, and attach it, by means of the pivot (Z and boxes G G, to any convenient part of the machine,'and arrange thelever in such a manner that the forward end shall come under the cutter-bar Dime-i; To the rear end of the said lever 'I firmly fix the drivers seat T, at such apointof the lever that the weight of the driver, when in h'is'senhshall act to lift such a portion of the weight of the cutter-ban as maybe desirable. The lever D and boxes 0 C are provided with several holes (seen in fig. 3) for the purpose of adjusting the leverage for the various weights of men that operate themaehine, in such a manner that heavy or light persons, when in the seat, will exert the same lifting force on the cutter-ban.

1 construct the foot-leverr with a section of a gear on one side, and a projection on the opposite side for the operator's foot to rest against. Instead of the gear, a chain may he used connecting the segment 8 to the lifting? apparatus. This foot-lever is attached to the machine in such a. position that the operator can reach it with his foot when sitting in the seat, and is connected to the lifting-device usually employed for raising the cutterbar, shown in figs. 2 and 3.

In mowing-machines constructed with the brace and cutter-bar pitman passing through the wheel, the stationary hollow ring may be constructed of any desirablediameter to admit free play to such parts, and may be' firmly attached'to the frame. I construct the stationary ring with flanges or lips, between which the periphery rolIs run, as seen in fig. 1. The outer rim, or revolving portion of the wheel, I also construct with like flanges. I provide periphery-rolls,ff, three or more, of such length and diameter as will -fit the space between the stationary ring-flanges, and between the revolvingwheel or rim and the hollow centre. These 1 rolls are held in their relative positions to each other by the rings J J, having holes in them, in which the pivots on the rollsff turn. The rings J J-are held firmly together by braces, dolcl, with screws or bolts, shown in fig. 1.

Operation.

When the operator is in the seat T, his weight rests on the rear end of the lever D, and the forward end, being under the cutter-bar brace E, lifts the dead weight of the whole cutter-bar, and also the downward pressure of the grass upon'the guards caused by the forward motion of the cutter-bar when in ope'ration,just in proportion to the leverage given by adjusting the pivot or pin :1. By this device, any amount of lifting-force desirable may be obtained, just suflicient to cause the cutter-bar G to follow the irregular surface of'the ground,

thus avoiding, in a great'measurc, the heavy draught of the cutter-bar, without any exertion of the operator.

It will also be seen that, by this device, the weight of the operator assists him to elevate the cutter-bar to pass obstacles, which is ellccted by the operator pushing the foot-lever 1- forward; this exerts a force that actsto turn the shai't 3 and the segment H, on which the chainc is wound, and winds up the chain 0, thus lifting the bar at a point forward of the cutters. The operator being in the sent, it will readily be seen that -thls force also acts upon the seat, which, being elevated considerably above the pivot, cl, is forced backward, and the whole leverage of the scat acts, in conjunction with the force exerted by the foot-lever, to elevate the cutter-bar G very quickly and with great ease, dispensing with the hand-lever.

Thus the cutter-bar maybe elevated to pass obstacles, or it may be held in an elevated position to turn corners, by a slight-effort of the foot, giving the operator the entire use of both hands to manage his team when mowing in bad places, or when turning the corncrs.

When the periphery-rolls are employed, they are placed between the stationary hollow centre and the'outer revolving rim that forms the wheel. Thus all the weight on this side of the machine rests on the peripheryrolls, causing them, when the machine is in operation, to roll round between the two rings with only the friction of the pivots which keep them in position in the ring J, and the friction of the rolls rolling between the two surfaces is very small, as the rolls revolve only half as fast as stationary rolls would.

The whole weight resting on the peripheries, no oil is necessary on these rolls, thus the care and expense of lubricating are saved, and the machine moves as easily as it would if both wheels turned on commonly constructed central axles. This gives the advantage of having the necessary parts pass through the wheel without increasing the draught of the machine.

What I claim as my invention, and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. The seat T, supported by mechanism constructed and arranged in such a manner that the-weight otthe operator shall act to lift the cutter-bar, substantially as described for the purpose set forth.

2. The foot-lever 1', when constructed with mechanism so arranged that, when operated upon, it shall'aot, .in conjunction with the operators weight in the seat, to elevate the cutter-bar, substantially'as described and set forth.

- '3. The segment 8, the gear 21, the lever r, in combination with the segment H, and elevating-chain a, sub: stan'tially as described for thc'purposc set forth.

4. The hanging boxes C C, the lever D, and pivot cl, in combination with the seat '1, constructed and arranged substantially as described for the purpose set forth. I

5. The combination of the periphery-rollsfff, the rings J J, the revolving rim I, and the stationary hollow ring K, with the frame A, const'ructed and arranged substantially as described for the purpose set forth.

GEORGE E. BURT. Witnesses E. A. HILDRETII, S. B. HILDRETH. 

